The post Colleen Hoover’s Layla ARC Review (& Giveaway) appeared first on ClaryNathanWill.
]]>I swear it still feels quite unbelievable that I have again been granted an ARC for a Colleen Hoover novel. It was a milestone for me in my blogging career when I was able to review Regretting You last year. I jumped at the chance to pick up Layla, Colleen’s first foray into paranormal romance.
Check out the Goodreads synopsis…
“From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover comes a novel that explores life after tragedy and the enduring spirit of love.
When Leeds meets Layla, he’s convinced he’ll spend the rest of his life with her—until an unexpected attack leaves Layla fighting for her life. After weeks in the hospital, Layla recovers physically, but the emotional and mental scarring has altered the woman Leeds fell in love with. In order to put their relationship back on track, Leeds whisks Layla away to the bed-and-breakfast where they first met. Once they arrive, Layla’s behavior takes a bizarre turn. And that’s just one of many inexplicable occurrences.
Feeling distant from Layla, Leeds soon finds solace in Willow—another guest of the B&B with whom he forms a connection through their shared concerns. As his curiosity for Willow grows, his decision to help her find answers puts him in direct conflict with Layla’s well-being. Leeds soon realizes he has to make a choice because he can’t help both of them. But if he makes the wrong choice, it could be detrimental for all of them.”
Check out my more detailed thoughts below…
- Characters: Leeds and Layla are the main characters of this paranormal fantasy. Leeds is a bass player and a songwriter who meets Layla at her sister’s wedding. Leed first noticed her absolutely awful dancing and from then on he was mesmerized by her. I am going to stress now that you should really go into this story as blind as possible, so I am not going to tell you too much more.
- Pacing: This story is paced extremely well. The way Colleen wrote this makes you want to keep reading, just after the first few pages you cannot help but be hooked. She did an excellent job at revealing the information slowly, the mystery was so epic.
- Setting: The main setting of this story was the bed and breakfast where Layla’s sister Aspen had her wedding. A year later Leed decides to bring Layla back to the place they met and the hijinks ensue.
- Romance: In comparison to other CoHo romances I would not say the romance was the key factor in this story. This is not her usual contemporary romance it is a paranormal mystery story. If you loved Verity I think you would really like Layla. If you love her traditional romances I would really push you to still pick this up. The romance between Leeds and Layla is a great backdrop for the larger story. Leeds loves Layla to death and watching him fight for her in different ways over the course of the story.
Check out this Q&A with Colleen…
You have written in many different genres and always keep your fans wanting more. For Layla, you are dipping your toes into a paranormal story that has lots of secrets. How do you describe Layla without giving anything away? #spoilerfreezone
What is supposed to be a short, romantic getaway for new couple Leeds and Layla turns into an extended vacation full of bizarre occurrences. But no matter how much Layla wants to leave, Leeds is more focused on finding answers for the unexplainable.
The paranormal elements in your story are faint…just a whisper…until they take over. What was it like adding another worldly twist to your writing for the first time? It was HARD. Super hard. I love using my imagination, but I also love realistic stories, so I found myself trying to pull back on things I didn’t feel were realistic. But then it got a lot easier when I decided to just make Leeds’s reactions sort of mirror what I would do orsay in those early moments. I put a lot of my own thoughts in Leeds’s character. He finds it hard to explain some of the things that happen, so his reactions are probably what my reactions would be at first. Until there was no room left for doubt, anyway. Then his actions veer very far from what mine would have been.
Love-at-first-sight is such a mundane phrase for what these two share. Their passionate relationship seems to move in fast-forward. What is it about these characters that make their connection so instantaneous?
I knew where the story was going to go, so I needed their meet-cute to be believable, fun, and I wanted them to be a couple readers would root for. I probably rewrote that first chapter dozens of times,but I focused mainly on their banter. Sometimes we meet people we instantly click with on so many different levels. Leeds and Layla clicked with their sarcasm, their humor, their taste in music. And she read him without even knowing him. To Leeds that was special. I think he felt seen in a world where he’s often overlooked.
It becomes somewhat of an inside joke between your couple that, before Layla, Leeds’ always wore a look like he was“dying inside.” The truth is that he was deeply unhappy before meeting Layla. How does she change his life?
Leeds is lonely and holding back on his dreams because of doubts. Leeds sees something different in Layla. She’s carefree, fun and gives him confidence to follow his dreams. In a sense, I think she’s his missing puzzle piece. She fills the parts of him that are empty.
Before Leeds, Layla doesn’t have a real direction in her life. What does this romance provide to her and why is she so grateful to have found her hero?
Layla is fresh out of college, living with her parents and unemployed. Leeds’s career gives her focus, and being with him in Tennessee got her out of a place where she probably felt useless and unproductive.
Can readers expect more paranormal elements in your books moving forward?
I’ll never say never!
Layla receives five out of five stars.
Follow Colleen on all her social channels…
Website: http://www.colleenhoover.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorColleenHoover/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/colleenhoover
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5430144.Colleen_Hoover
Thank you again to Colleen Hoover and Montlake Romance for the review opportunity. Thank you for reading and supporting my blog!
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]]>This is a bit of a different review from me. I had an opportunity to watch a screener of this documentary. A documentary all about the ups and downs of the genre we all love.
NAUGHTY BOOKS: A Documentary directed by Austen Eleanore Rachlis and starring Kelli Maine, Laurelin Paige, Kristen Proby, CJ Roberts, Aimee Garcia, Allison Tolman and Aisha Tyler is available now!
“No one was prepared for the success of Fifty Shades of Grey. Originally written in 2010 as a piece of Twilight fan fiction and posted online, it eventually sold over 100 million copies, taking erotica mainstream. But women didn’t only read erotica in large numbers; they also wrote it. In the aftermath of Fifty Shades a cottage industry emerged around self-published romance novels. Once women who worked forty-hour-a-week jobs, living paycheck-to-paycheck, many of them are now New York Times bestselling authors with their own merchandise lines and die-hard fans. Naughty Books follows three such women: an Air Force vet, a telemarketer, and a hospital administrator who became millionaires in under a year by using pen names to sell erotica online. They garnered thousands of fans and secured lucrative book deals with major publishing houses by writing about good girls and bad boys finding love and having steamy sex. However, as more and more people saw writing erotic romance as a quick path to money and fame, the market became saturated with hundreds of romance novels published every month, making success difficult to maintain…”
A Few of My Personal Thoughts…
- What I Loved: I loved the way they showed off our community. The documentary showed bloggers, book clubs, and conventions. It showed how we are all in this together and we love what we love and that is more than okay. My favourite cameos were the owners of The Ripped Bodice, the bookstore in LA that I have always wanted to go to. The way they talked about the industry in such a knowledgeable way was amazing. They said some of the things I have been screaming from the rooftops for years, that this genre is written by women, edited by women, marketed by women, reviewed by women, for WOMEN! Expert voices were really great too, this was well researched and overall a great exploration of the romance genre.
- What I Was Only Okay With: First off I was let down by who the documentary chose to focus on. I gather based on the events of the documentary that this was filmed a while ago, so who was dominating the genre was a different story back then. I was really let down because I initially signed on to review this because of Colleen Hoover’s involvement, I love her and wanted to get some more insight from her. I swear she was barely in this and when she was in it, it was so valuable I really think they lost an opportunity to feature her way more in this documentary. I have not read any books by any other author that got the most speaking time. I understood looking at someone like Kristen Proby, but it made me wish they could have spent more time on what is going on today like how she not only writes but is publishing other authors. CJ Roberts really did demonstrate the burnout and demand the genre asks of you, so I valued having that perspective somewhat. I really did not understand why Kelli Maine was so focused on, she bugged me quite quickly honestly. It was the insinuation that the genre was not allowing her to write what she wanted and how she wanted it. And maybe that was more of the story when this came out but I would say today there is way more respect from fans when it comes to pushing boundaries and breaking the genre contract. I would also say that these fans are loyal, I read and review every release for the authors I love to death. When they are writing what they are truly passionate about it shows in the quality of their story. I have been through numerous experiences where books get pushed back or another book takes precedence and I have always never abandoned the author because of it. I don’t “forget” authors like how Kelli stated it, and it was her sections that made me feel as if the fans who to me are some of the best in the book world were not represented fairly.
You Can Watch the Doc at The Link Below…
I want to thank Social Butterfly and 1091 pictures for this opportunity. Thank you for reading and supporting my blog. Stay safe!
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]]>With help from Montlake Romance, I am available to provide an exclusive excerpt, author interview, and a rafflecopter interview if you stick around until the end of the review.
I cannot even properly describe what this opportunity has meant for me. CoHo is the pinnacle of the genre, a monolith, a superstar! I am so grateful that getting closer to the team at Montlake this year allowed for the opportunity to review for Colleen. Earlier this year I was denied a copy of Verity and it stung, I wanted to read an ARC of Colleen’s so badly. To now be receiving my chance with a book like Regretting You. It is such an honour as this book is a masterpiece, the best book I read all year. A book I want to gift to anyone and everyone, I want to scream from the rooftops about just how phenomenal Regretting You is! As Publishers Weekly puts it “this is Hoover at her very best.”
Check out the Goodreads synopsis below…
“From #1 New York Times bestselling author of It Ends with Us comes a poignant novel about family, first love, grief, and betrayal that will touch the hearts of both mothers and daughters.
Morgan Grant and her sixteen-year-old daughter, Clara, would like nothing more than to be nothing alike.
Morgan is determined to prevent her daughter from making the same mistakes she did. By getting pregnant and married way too young, Morgan put her own dreams on hold. Clara doesn’t want to follow in her mother’s footsteps. Her predictable mother doesn’t have a spontaneous bone in her body.
With warring personalities and conflicting goals, Morgan and Clara find it increasingly difficult to coexist. The only person who can bring peace to the household is Chris—Morgan’s husband, Clara’s father, and the family anchor. But that peace is shattered when Chris is involved in a tragic and questionable accident. The heartbreaking and long-lasting consequences will reach far beyond just Morgan and Clara.
While struggling to rebuild everything that crashed around them, Morgan finds comfort in the last person she expects to, and Clara turns to the one boy she’s been forbidden to see. With each passing day, new secrets, resentment, and misunderstandings make mother and daughter fall further apart. So far apart, it might be impossible for them to ever fall back together.”
Check out my more detailed thoughts…
- Characters: There are a few characters who deeply affect the story including the protagonists, the mother-daughter combo of Morgan and Clara, along with their immediate family including Morgan’s husband/Clara’s father Chris, Morgan’s sister/Clara’s aunt Jenny, Jenny’s partner/Morgan and Chris’s high school friend Jonah, and the boy Clara has a crush on Miller. Each character has a deep effect on both Morgan and Clara, as they bring about deep losses and pain. This story is about how Morgan, Clara, and other characters cope with this pain.
- Pacing: Colleen was a mastermind of plot twists. The nature of how the small pieces of the bigger puzzle fell was phenomenal. I could not help but be on the edge of my seat the entire reading experience.
- Romance: This story was one of multiple romances. I cannot even go into them too deep because of spoilers. You need to pick up this book, go in as blind as possible. Trust me! It will be so worth it.
If I haven’t convinced you yet check out this excerpt…
“Despite knowing I just pissed my mother off by being half an hour late for curfew, I still can’t stop smiling. That kiss with Miller was worth it. I bring my fingers to my lips.
I’ve never been kissed like that. The guys I’ve kissed in the past all seemed like they were in a hurry, wanting to shove their tongue in my mouth before I changed my mind.
Miller was the opposite. He was so patient, yet in a chaotic way. It was like he’d thought about kissing me so often that he wanted to savor every second of it.
I don’t know that I’ll ever not smile when I think about that kiss. It kind of makes me nervous for school tomorrow. I’m not sure where that kiss leaves us, but it felt like it was a statement. I just don’t know what exactly that statement was.
My phone buzzes in my back pocket. I roll over and pull it out, then fall onto my back again. It’s a text from Miller.
Miller: I don’t know about you, but sometimes when something significant happens, I get home and think of all the things I wish had gone differently. All the things I wish I would have said.
Me: Is that happening now?
Miller: Yes. I don’t feel like I was entirely forthcoming with you.
I roll onto my stomach, hoping to ease the nausea that just passed through me. It was going so well…
Me: What weren’t you honest about?
Miller: I was honest. Just not entirely forthcoming, if there’s a difference. I left a lot out of our conversation that I want you to know.
Me: Like what?
Miller: Like why I’ve liked you for as long as I have.
I wait for him to elaborate, but he doesn’t. I’m staring at my phone with so much intensity that I almost throw it when it rings unexpectedly. It’s Miller’s phone number. I hesitate before answering it, because I rarely ever talk on the phone. I much prefer texting. But he knows I have my phone in my hand, so I can’t very well send it to voice mail. I swipe my finger across the screen and then roll off the bed and head to my bathroom for more privacy. I sit on the edge of the tub.
“Hello?”
“Hey,” he says.
“Sorry. It’s too much to text.”
“You’re kind of freaking me out with all the innuendos.”
“Oh. No, it’s all good. Don’t be nervous. I just should have said this to you in person.” Miller inhales a deep breath, and then on the exhale, he starts talking. “When I was fifteen, I watched you in a school play. You had the lead role, and at one point, you performed a monologue that went on for like two whole minutes. You were so convincing and you looked so heartbroken I was ready to walk onto the stage and hug you. When the play was finally over and the actors came back out onto the stage, you were smiling and laughing, and there wasn’t a trace of that character left in you. I was in awe, Clara. You have this charisma about you that I don’t think you’re aware of, but it’s captivating. I was a scrawny kid as a sophomore, and even though I’m a year older than you, I hadn’t quite filled out yet, and I had acne and felt inferior to you, so I never worked up the courage to approach you. Another year went by, and I continued to admire you from afar. Like that time you ran for school treasurer and tripped walking off the stage, but you jumped up and did this weird little kick and threw your arms up in the air and made the entire audience laugh. Or that time Mark Avery popped your bra strap in the hallway, and you were so sick of him doing it that you followed him to his classroom, reached inside your hoodie, and took off your bra and then threw it at him. I remember you yelling something like, ‘If you want to touch a bra so damn bad, just keep it, you perv!’ Then you stormed out. It was epic. Everything you do is epic, Clara. Which is why I never had the courage to approach you, because an epic girl needs an equally epic guy, and I guess I’ve just never felt epic enough for you. I’ve said epic so many times in the last fifteen seconds—I’m so sorry.”
He’s out of breath when he finally stops talking.
I’m smiling so hard my cheeks ache. I had no idea he felt this way. No idea.
I wait a few seconds to make sure he’s done; then I finally respond. I’m pretty sure he can hear from my voice alone that I’m smiling. “First of all, it’s hard to believe you were ever insecure. And second, I think you’re pretty epic, too, Miller. Always have. Even when you were scrawny and had acne.”
He laughs a little. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
I can hear him sigh. “Glad I got that off my chest, then. See you at school tomorrow?”
“Good night.”
We end the call, and I don’t know how long I sit and stare at my phone.”
I give Regretting You five out of five stars.
Montlake has kindly provided an exclusive interview with Colleen…
You are ‘label-less’ in the fact that you write in several genres. Readers never know what to expect next. If someone asks, how do you label yourself?
When I self-published my first novel I had no idea what genre to put it in. I thought I had written a drama but it turns to that I had written a romance. I’ve learned a lot since then, but I still don’t put a lot of weight in genre when I write. When your best friend is begging you to read a book, it’s not going to matter what genre it is when someone you trust is passionate about the story.
To keep all of your stories and characters straight, you must be very organized.
I’m the most disorganized person you will ever meet! I have no schedule. I can’t wake up before nine in the morning. I probably don’t go to bed until like three in the morning. I usually work about 16 hours a day.
What happens if you get blocked when you are writing?
If I get stuck writing, I go for a drive and play music. Music really helps me plot. I love The Avett Brothers, X Ambassadors, Airborne Toxic Event…I could go on and on.
What can you tell readers about your latest release Regretting You?
I would spoil it if I told you about it! Most of my books are like that. I can’t say what they are about or it spoils it. But I can say that Regretting You is told from a dual point-of-view centered on the inner lives of both a teen and adult protagonist.
Sounds like lots of different types of readers will be interested!
Absolutely. I wanted to write a book that bridged the gap between young adult and contemporary romance so that mothers can read with their daughters. I think it’s exciting to see people sharing reading experiences.
Follow Colleen at the links below…
Website: http://www.colleenhoover.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorColleenHoover/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/colleenhoover
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5430144.Colleen_Hoover
Thank you again to Collen and her team. Thank you for reading and supporting my blog.
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]]>Don’t go hardcore or extreme right away! This might put you off NA forever. NA deserves a gradual entry, one should start with novels that tow the line between NA and YA. My recommendation for someone’s very first NA book is…
Slammed tells the story of an eighteen-year-old girl who moves to a new city with her mother, after the death of her father. She meets her new neighbour and he asks her out for dinner. The two of them have a wonderful time on their date and are looking forward to pursuing this relationship further until the first day of school arrives and the protagonist discovers her new neighbour is her English teacher.
This story is a great introduction to central ideas explored in NA, as the protagonist deals with issues larger than high school angst. This book is highly emotional, I cry every time I re-read it. This is such an essential read and the gateway drug into all the other Colleen Hoover novels. CoHo is a pinnacle of the NA world, she is beloved by some and despised by others. You are not really an NA reader until you pick up some CoHo.
The next thing you should take into account are the tropes you might want to read. NA is all about categorizing the stories into general concepts. I am such an easy to please reader that I love so many tropes, but I do fall into cravings of certain tropes every once and a while. There may be a day I wake up and I need to pick what I want to read next and for some reason, I’m craving hockey romance.
These next two books are both by Cora Carmack, another super popular NA author. Both of these stories should help demonstrate to you what you like and want more of.
Both of these books take place in universities, a location that you should figure out if you like. All Lined Up has a football element, and as someone who does not enjoy watching sports, I would understand this fact turning people away from the story. I actually love reading books with sports elements, Cora Carmack’s Rusk University series is my fave for football. Most of my favourite ones happen to be the hockey ones (probably cause I’m Canadian). Sports is never front and center, but it throws in interesting problems for the characters to solve. Losing It is one of my absolute favourites this one is much artsier, the protagonist is a theatre major. It conveys emotion phenomenally, and I re-read it constantly.
The next thing you should consider is how much time and energy you want to put into a series. NA is both very standalone and series based. Often an author has written a series of standalones. So you can read them individually in any order you want, but the most rewarding way to read it is in publication order.
Wait For You was one of the first long-haul NA series I read. This series is now six books, I started it when there was only three, but I knew there would be more. NA series like this one brings something really special to the table, the ability to see how characters you love are doing years down the line. The couple from book one will continue to appear in some shape or form in the next instalments allowing you to check up on them. This luxury doesn’t really exist in a YA series, where you might just follow the same couple for three books and then have to say goodbye. Some NA series are in the double digits now as readers have fallen in love with a world, and the authors are satisfied with continuing to write in it.
Finally, despite my first warning of going in slow if you want something that pushes your limits a bit look no further than this Katy Evans book…
There are thousands of NA books about wealthy businessmen with broken pasts (because Fifty Shades of Grey was a phenomenon), but my personal favourite of the trope and the one I compare any new back to is Manwhore. If you want the truest NA expirence you should pick this one and any of Katy Evans’ other books, just like the others authors I have mentioned so far she is renowned in the genre.
I hope these recommendations can guide you into the NA world, as always reach out to me if you want any tailored recommendations. I am more than happy to place an NA book in your hands that you would fall in love with.
Thank you for reading and supporting my blog!
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Full Tilt (Full Tilt #1) by Emma Scott I cannot even explain to you how much I bawled my eyes out during this damn book. Between the heartbreaking situations both characters are in and the immense love they begin to feel for each other, all I did was cry, cry, and cry some more. To make matters worse the ending is probably the ending that has left me the most raw of any NA book I have ever read. This is book so important as it truly reminds the reader about the importance of living life to the fullest and not holding back your love for anyone and everyone.
All In (Full Tilt #2) by Emma ScottI am pretty sure I cried even more in the sequel. Most of the tears came from me reeling from the events of the previous novel and their implications to this story. Just read Full Tilt and then All In and thank me later!
Mists of the Serengeti by Leylah AttarI do not even know how to explain how phenomenal and emotional this book is. NA books do not usually stand out because of things like their setting but Tanzania was just beautiful in this story. The book begins tragically, making you cry from the very start. The littlest things in this book would make me burst into tears. Over the course of the story your tears evolve from sadness to happiness and every emotion in between, Please I beg you to pick this one as it a wondrous story.
The Birthday List by Devney PerryI am a huge fan of Devney’s work and her latest release was stunning. The Birthday List begins tragically with the protagonist becoming a widow at a young age. The tears flowed more and more as she opened herself up to love again. You gotta read this and all the other books written by Devney Perry.
Dearest Ivie (Black Dagger Brotherhood #15.5) by J.R. WardI know this is the millionth book in this series, but it deserves a special mention. I am a huge fan of this mammoth series, and if you are ever in the mood to marathon a lot of books I could not recommend this series more. Why this is on the list is that I was not expecting to bawl my eyes out. There’s a twist part way through that I will not spoil here, but it was heartbreaking. I cried all the way until the end.
Say You Want Me (Return to Me #2) by Corinne MichaelsI recently read the Return to Me series and this book stood out as I lost it, in the last quarter of the novel. This is another example of there’s a huge twist and this book becomes something completely different. Again no spoilers, but I cried like a baby. The series was pretty great overall, but this was the only book that made me cry.
Retreat (Getaway #1) by Jay CrownoverJay is one of my most favourite authors and this is one of my faves from her. The story starts off with the classic NA trope of city girl goes to small town to get away and meets the cowboy love interest. This story evolved into so much more, and the events left me in tears. Some tears fell due to the ups and downs in the relationship between the characters, and others fell due to the situation and the mystery that unfolded. This is such a good book, really you should read it.
Strong Enough by Melanie Harlow and David RomanovThis is hands down a favourite NA of mine. The struggle and angst exhibited in this story inspired so many tears. If you have never read m/m I highly encourage this one. It is the best m/m I have read from any NA authors. This is truly a beautiful book.
Ugly Love by Colleen HooverWhen it comes to picking an author that has inspired the most tears in my NA reading life, it is hands down CoHo. Ugly Love has always been my favourite and every time I read it I just cry. I cry because so much of it is sad for both Tate and especially Miles, but ultimately the only way I can process all my emotions around them falling in love with each other is to bawl my eyes out.
It Ends With Us by Colleen HooverBesides Ugly Love, only It Ends With Us has matched the size of the puddle of tears that I sit in while I read. I understand the drama surrounding some Colleen Hoover books, but this one is such an important story. This is quite an emotional story, hence the tears. Every women needs to read this, that is mandatory.
I hope you have been inspired to pick up some of these books along with a box of tissues.
Thank you for reading!
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